A car battery is one of the most essential parts of a car; however, car batteries tend to have a limited lifespan, ranging from 3- 5 years depending on the use, nature of the trips, and the climatic conditions. You will probably need to replace your car’s battery at some point during its use. So, it is important to monitor your battery’s condition regularly.
Each model has different specifications and requires different types of batteries. Here are a few things that you should keep in mind while buying a car battery.
- Battery size: It is one of the most important things to keep in mind while getting a car battery. They generally come in different group sizes indicated by the length, width, and height of the battery. You should always confirm the battery size required, either by checking the owner’s manual or by consulting with your mechanic. The size of the battery should not be compromised. The right side of the car battery should be the one that fits perfectly in the battery tray and secures the battery and prevents any damages arising from the vibrations.
- The freshness of the battery: you can get to know about the freshness of the battery through the code on the battery which consists of letters and numbers. The letter indicates the month whereas the number stands for the year of manufacture. You should always check for the freshness of the battery before buying a new one. Also, never buy a battery that is older than six months from the date of manufacture.
- Reserve capacity: Reserve capacity is basically the amount of time the battery can run on its own power without the engine and before the discharge. It is always better to have high reserve capacity in the car battery as it helps the car through tough situations such as alternator failure, accidentally leaving the lights on, etc.
- Power requirement: power requirements are also referred to by CCA or Cold Cranking Amps and Cranking Amps (CA). It is basically the energy required to start the engine at a temperature of 32 degrees Fahrenheit while Cold Cranking Amps refers to the ability of the battery to start the car at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Check for maintenance: the car batteries usually come in two scenarios that are the low maintenance and the maintenance-free type. The maintenance-free car battery is the sealed one and the liquid electrolyte runs throughout the battery life with more or less no need of replacement, whereas, low maintenance is unsealed with caps that can be opened or closed to add the distilled water occasionally.
- Look out for the warranties: you should never overlook the warranties, it is always recommended to consider warranties and choose the car battery which offers free replacement. The warranty periods are usually measured by a figure combining the free replacement period and the prorated period. With the prorated period you can get a partial reimbursement on the purchase sum of the battery for a limited period.
- Check for previous experience: before buying the battery, you should always look out for the previous experience of the battery. You can check with your own experience with the battery type. A battery with which you had a good experience and which served you for a long time without any issues is always preferred, you can check and compare the experiences of your friends also.
- Ampere hour: this indicates how much electricity the car battery can store. The higher the AH, the better it is, as it means that the battery can maintain a load for a long time.